neverdie bms advanced series user guide v8.0.08...bms operation the neverdie® bms operates by...

MiniBMS OptoLoop

UL Ratings

UL 508 - Contactor

UL 991 - BMS

UL 1998 - BMS

UL 1973 - System

TECHNOLOGY

NeverDie® Advanced BMS – User Guide

R8.0.8 – 02/14/2019

®TECHNOLOGY

® ®

Notice of Copyright NeverDie® BMS Product Manual Copyright © 2019 all rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced in any form

without the express consent of Lithionics Battery, Clearwater, FL 33765 USA. Lithionics Battery reserves the right to revise this

document and make periodic changes to the contents without obligation or organization of such changes and revisions.

Safety Precautions

All electrical work should be performed in accordance with local and national electrical codes.

Voltage is present at the battery terminals, use insulated tools and gloves while working on the system.

Always turn off equipment connected to the system in addition to turning OFF the Power switch provided on the system to

isolate the batteries from other electrical circuits, before performing any repairs or maintenance on the system.

Always use proper wire sizes to connect the system to inverters, chargers or other equipment.

Always use crimped connections to connect to the battery terminals.

Read and follow the inverter, charger or other equipment manufacturers safety precautions prior to connecting the system

to that equipment.

Index

Table of Contents

Index ................................................................................................................................................................................................2

Overview ..........................................................................................................................................................................................3

Installation ......................................................................................................................................................................................3

Definitions .......................................................................................................................................................................................3

BMS Operation ................................................................................................................................................................................5

SOC Gauge operation ....................................................................................................................................................................6

System Status bits .........................................................................................................................................................................6

Bluetooth Telemetry ......................................................................................................................................................................8

LED Indicators ................................................................................................................................................................................8

BMS Troubleshooting .....................................................................................................................................................................8

Advanced BMS functions ...............................................................................................................................................................9

BMS Configuration....................................................................................................................................................................... 11

Serial Data Interface ................................................................................................................................................................... 12

TCP/IP Data Interface ................................................................................................................................................................ 13

CANBus Data Interface ............................................................................................................................................................... 14

AMPSEAL Connector ................................................................................................................................................................... 15

Serial Port Connector .................................................................................................................................................................. 16

LITHIONICS BATTERY, CLEARWATER, FL 33765 USA PH: 727.726.4204 | FAX: 727.797.8046 | WEB: LITHIONICSBATTERY.COM

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Overview The main purpose of the NeverDie® BMS is to protect the battery by disconnecting it from the rest of the system when it detects any

potentially harmful conditions, as well as provide emergency energy reserve by saving part of the battery’s capacity during normal

use. Additional functions of the Advanced BMS is to gather battery data and send it over a digital interface to a computer system for

data logging and analysis, as well as display real time data.

Installation Since Lithionics Battery offers countless battery configurations, this document will not cover detailed installation steps and assumes

that the Battery and BMS are already installed. Please refer to your specific installation guide or contact Lithionics Battery for

installation assistance. Typically, the BMS is installed between the battery and the rest of your system, acting as an intelligent power

switch. NOTE: Do NOT attempt to bypass the BMS or tap any loads directly from any battery modules, as it could lead to permanent

battery damage and voids your battery warranty!!!

Definitions It’s important to understand some common terms describing a lithium battery’s operation, which are often used in detailed feature

descriptions further in this document. It also helps to visualize a charge/discharge graph of a typical lithium battery, to see various

voltage points and how they relate to state of charge.

VPC – Volts Per Cell. A Lithium Battery contains several cells connected in series. Battery voltage is a sum of all cell

voltages. LiFePO4 chemistry cells are 3.2VPC nominal (i.e. average voltage during discharge). A typical 12V battery has 4 cells

in series, also known as a “4S” configuration. Respectively, a 24V battery is 8S, while 48V batteries can be 15S or 16S

depending on the model. Since the BMS monitors and acts at the individual cell level as well as pack level, it’s more common

to refer to cell level voltages, abbreviated as VPC. For example, a fully charged and rested cell is at 3.4VPC, which means a

12V (4S) battery would be resting at 13.6V.

Picture on the left illustrates the cell level and the pack level voltages.

Due to manufacturing tolerances and environmental factors

individual cell voltages may not always be the same, so the BMS must

employ both cell level (MiniBMS®) and pack level (NeverDie® BMS)

triggers for protection events such as HVC and LVC. Our BMS also

works to minimize those voltage differences in a process called

“balancing”, which occurs at the end of each full charge cycle.

Pack level triggers are more conservative than cell level triggers to

allow for some natural imbalance in cell voltages at the top and the

bottom of the charge/discharge cycle. BMS events are triggered on

both cell level and pack level, whichever happens first.

In a 12V battery, for example, pack level and cell level triggers are:

HVC Pack Level = 14.80 V

HVC Cell Level = 3.75 VPC

LVC Pack Level = 11.60 V

LVC Cell Level = 2.50 VPC

Charge / Discharge Curve. One of the main advantages of a Lithium battery compared to a Lead Acid battery its

flat charge/discharge curve. This means that the battery voltage stays relatively constant for most of the charge/discharge

cycle, with sharp “knees” on both ends where voltage rises and drops very fast. Constant voltage means stable power is

supplied to loads, making them operate more efficiently. However, this also renders voltage-based SOC (state-of-charge)

measurement useless. Voltage based SOC estimates can only be done at the upper and lower “knees” where voltage change

is more pronounced. See the Charge and Discharge Curves below with explanations of usable and reserve power.


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RVC – Reserve Voltage Cutoff. Typically set to 3.0VPC on voltage based BMS triggers. At this level the BMS

would shut off the battery power allowing the NeverDie® Reserve Power capacity to be stored in the battery for an

emergency, such as engine cranking. The areas shaded red in the picture below represent the Reserve Power. In Advanced

Series BMS, the RVC level can also be set based on true SOC measurement, using a Coulomb counter, which also allows for a

larger reserve power capacity if desired.

LVC – Low Voltage Cutoff. Typically set to 2.9VPC at the pack level and 2.5VPC at the cell level. At this voltage the

battery is almost fully discharged, so the BMS shuts off the battery to prevent damage due to over-discharge. To compensate

for voltage sag under heavy load, LVC is reduced by 0.1VPC per 1C rate of discharge, up to 0.3VPC limit at 3C rate.

Discharge Curve

HVC – High Voltage Cutoff. Typically set to 3.75VPC. At this voltage level the cell is not taking any more charge,

so voltage rise becomes exponential and if left unchecked would cause permanent damage to the battery. The BMS shuts off

the battery when any cell reaches this level, allowing voltage to rest down.

Balancing Stage. As the battery nears the end of charge the cells enter the upper knee of the charge curve, where

voltage rise becomes faster and faster. Due to individual manufacturing differences between cells, some cells reach this stage

earlier than others, causing voltage imbalances between cells. While not harmful in the short term, in the long term such an

imbalance will become more and more pronounced which eventually reduces the useful capacity of the battery. To

counteract this process the BMS performs cell balancing by slightly discharging the higher voltage cells (a process called

“shunting”), this allows the lower cells time to catch up. This process is similar to “equalization” in a Lead Acid battery but

requires more precision and controlled by the BMS on an individual cell level.

Charge Curve


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BMS Operation The NeverDie® BMS operates by monitoring the voltage and temperature data from each individual cell and battery pack as a whole.

Cell data is then passed on to the BMS via a unique single-wire interface called OptoLoop®. Such an interface allows for a flexible

distributed design for battery packs of various voltages and capacities. OptoLoop® works by establishing circuit continuity which passes

thru all individual BMS monitoring boards installed on each cell inside the battery modules. When continuity is broken by any cell

board or wiring fault, the main BMS unit will open the main contactor as well as not allow it to close until the fault is resolved.

Below flowchart depicts typical BMS operation cycle when battery is fully depleted or at risk of overcharge by a rogue charge source.

The NeverDie® BMS does not need to intervene if the battery is cycled normally.

For simplicity reasons this flowchart only shows basic protective BMS functions based on voltage triggers. Additional BMS functions

based on temperature triggers and other advanced functions based on SOC triggers are not shown in this flowchart.

Please refer to Advanced BMS Functions chapter for details of those functions.

Turn on battery power

by short press of the Power

Button

Normal operation:

3.00 < VPC < 3.65

Press and hold

Power Button for 5

sec to turn off

battery power when

needed

During discharge

voltage drops to RVC

level. BMS triggers

RVC event and

opens the contactor

Short press of the

Power Button

reactivates BMS

contactor to access

reserve energy and

begin charging

Charge Source

activated?

As reserve gets

depleted voltage

drops to LVC level.

BMS triggers LVC

event and opens the

contactor

Yes

No

Attach and activate

a charge source

ASAP. Short press

the Power Button to

reactivate BMS

contactor to start

charging

During charge, if a

charge source tries

to overcharge the

battery or if cells are

imbalanced and any

one cell becomes

overcharged

HVC voltage

reached at cell

level?

Signal charge source

to pause charging

until cell voltage

recovers, promoting

cell balancing

HVC voltage

reached at pack

level?

Signal charge source

to stop charging

until battery rests

down to Float level

Did charger

fail to stop?

It’s still charging?

No

BMS triggers HVC

event and opens the

contactor, until

voltage drops or

short press of Power

Button

Yes

No

Yes Yes

No

Did charger

fail to stop?

It’s still charging?

Yes

No

BMS Operation flowchart


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SOC Gauge operation The Advanced Series BMS includes an integrated SOC Gauge, designed to track battery state of charge (percent of usable energy left

in the battery) as well as other useful data parameters. Tracking state of charge is accomplished by a Coulomb counter, based on an

internal, high sensitivity hall-effect sensor. The SOC Gauge data will only be correct if the configuration parameters are set correctly,

which are pre-set initially by Lithionics Battery, but are user adjustable with supporting hardware. If they are ever accidently modified

a record of the default values is included in this manual for your reference. The SOC Gauge will also track and display live amperage

(A), live wattage (W), battery voltage (V), temperature (F/C), amp hours (Ah), watt hours (Wh), time remaining (d/h), etc. The meter

will be most accurate if the battery is fully charged on a regular basis. If the battery is always partially charged, then the SOC meter

reading may drift in the long term and will become less accurate. When the most

accurate measurements are required it is recommended to perform a full charge at

least weekly.

SOC Data can be observed on the optional LCD Display pod or extracted from the

BMS data interface.

LCD pod has a backlight feature, which activates for 30 seconds after each button

press, to better see the data in the dark environment. After 30 seconds backlight

turns off to avoid light pollution if LCD is installed in the sleeping compartment.

The LCD Display pod has a 2-line screen capable of showing 2 data points

independently. Pressing the left button scrolls through the available data points on

upper line, pressing right button scrolls through the available data points on the

lower line. Any combination of data is possible on these 2 lines. The following list

explains all available data points:

E █ █ █ █ █ █ F – Graphical representation of the Battery Gauge. Each of the 6 bars corresponds to approximately 17% of

capacity.

100% BAT – Digital Battery gauge. BAT level is derived from SOC minus the MinSOC setting explained in the Settings

section below, allowing for a hidden reserve

23.4 A – Amperage. Instant current reading. The “+” sign in front of the value indicates charging current. No sign indicates

discharging current.

20000 W – Instant Wattage reading. This power value is derived by multiplying current and voltage together. This is

useful to estimate how much instant power is passing through the battery circuit. This value can be manually converted to

horse power by the formula: HP=Watts/745.7

39.6 V – Instant battery voltage reading.

82F t1 – Instant temperature reading. Can be set to C or F in the Config menu. Temperature data comes from Temperature

Intervention Sensors, or from BMS internal sensor if external sensors are not present. “t1” indicates how many sensors are

present, up to 8 sensors are supported in large systems with multiple battery modules.

100.0 Ah – Remaining Amp Hour capacity of the battery.

3960 Wh – Remaining Watt Hour capacity of the battery. The Watt Hour value is derived by multiplying the Amp Hour

value and the Pack Voltage together. This value will be changing dynamically as voltage fluctuates with load.

D 22.5h – Remaining time at current load level until battery is depleted. This value will be changing dynamically if load

current changes over time. When battery is charging first letter will change from D to C and displayed value will indicate

remaining time to full charge. Time counter label automatically scales to days (d) or hours (h).

R000000 – System Status Bits value. See chapters below for detailed explanation of this value.

T0001234 – Total number of AmpHours consumed from the battery since day of manufacture. This value helps estimate

battery State of Health by extrapolating its discharge cycles over the life of the battery.

System Status bits One of the data values in the BMS Data Stream is called System Status, where each bit represents one of the basic conditions of a

battery system in real time. In Serial/Ethernet streams this value is labeled ‘R’, located at the end of the data string, it’s 6 characters


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long and coded in Hexadecimal digits ‘0-F’. Each HEX digit represents 4 bits of binary data, for a total of 24 bits of data. In CANBus

stream it’s located in the first 3 bytes of the message ID = 0x18FF98FA (Battery State). See CANBus documentation for details.

NOTE: Some of the bits represent optional BMS features, which might not be enabled in your system.

Description of System Status bits: HEX Digit 6 HEX Digit 5 HEX Digit 4 HEX Digit 3 HEX Digit 2 HEX Digit 1

23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

Bit 0 – High Voltage State. Indicates that battery voltage is above HVC, typically 3.70VPC.

Bit 1 – Charge Source Detected. Indicates that charge voltage was detected on the far side of the contactor, allowing contactor

to close even when battery is in Low Voltage state. This bit resets when battery reaches Nominal voltage.

Bit 2 – NeverDie Reserve State. Indicates that battery is in the NeverDie Reserve State, allowing access to reserve energy.

Bit 3 – OptoLoop® Cell Loop is open. Indicates that Cell Loop is open, which means one or more cells is out of normal voltage

range, or broken Cell Loop wiring between battery modules and/or NeverDie BMS unit.

Bit 4 – Reserve Voltage Range. Indicates that battery voltage is below RVC, typically 3.0VPC.

Bit 5 – Low Voltage State. Indicates that battery voltage is below LVC, typically 2.6VPC.

Bit 6 – Battery Protection State. Indicates that battery is recovering from abnormal event, such as short circuit, pre-charge

failure, or contactor failure. See additional bits below for more details.

Bit 7 – Power Off State. Indicates that battery was turned off by a command or a button press.

Bit 8 – AUX Contacts State. State of Auxiliary contacts inside the contactor, reflects actual physical state of the main contactor.

This optional feature requires special model of the contactor with AUX contacts.

Bit 9 – AUX Contacts Error. In case of contactor welding, this bit will indicate discrepancy between expected and actual state of

contactor. It also sets Bit 6 – Battery Protection State.

Bit 10 – Pre-charge Error. Indicates that Pre-charge function failed to detect voltage rise on the load side of BMS, which could

mean a short circuit condition or other issues with load wiring. It also sets Bit 6 – Battery Protection State. This optional feature

requires Pre-charge relay and resistor to be installed inside the BMS unit.

Bit 11 – Contactor Flutter. If BMS contactor changes state 10 times over 5-minute period, BMS enters Power Off state and sets

this bit, so troubleshooting can be performed. This condition could be caused by wiring problems or other hardware issues and requires

service attention.

Bit 12 – AC Power Present. Indicates that BMS detected AC power presence, so BMS expects charging to begin shortly. This

optional feature requires special wiring inside BMS unit to connect to AC grid.

Bit 13 – TSM Charger Present. Indicates that CAN message from TSM charger was detected on CANBus interface. This indicates

TSM charger is present and has AC power. Used for troubleshooting TSM chargers.

Bit 14 – TSM Charger Error. Message received from TSM charger indicating an issue with the charger. Further analysis of CAN

data from the charger is needed to determine exact nature of the problem.

Bit 15 – Temperature Sensor Error. Indicates a problem with temperature sensor installed inside the battery module.

Temperature data from this sensor is used to cutoff battery power under extreme temperatures.

Bit 16 – AGSR State. State of optional AGSR Control circuit, used to start/stop generators when BMS is wired into supported

generator’s auto start interface.

Bit 17 – High Temperature State. Temperature detected by intervention sensor exceeded allowed threshold.

Bit 18 – Low Temperature State. Temperature detected by intervention sensor is below allowed threshold.

Bit 19 – Auxiliary Input 1 State. Reflects the state of AUXIN1 input, which is optional and application specific.

Bit 20 – Charge Disable State. Signals any charge source to stop charging the battery while this bit is set. This state is determined

by BMS logic based on multiple factors including cell level and pack level protective functions.

Bit 21 – Overcurrent State. BMS detected current higher than preset limit.

Bit 22 – Bit 23. Not used, reserved for future functions.


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Bluetooth Telemetry Lithionics Battery has developed the Lithionics Battery Monitor application for iOS and Android mobile platforms, which

allows real time monitoring of battery data if the BMS is equipped with the optional Bluetooth BLE module. However, our Status

Code Reader function can be used even without this optional module.

The Status Code Reader function makes it easy to visualize

status of each bit by typing in the System Status value and

observing color coded table of bit values, see example

below. You can download this application from Apple and

Google application markets on your iPhone, iPad, Android

phone or tablet.

Each active bit description is color coded in green or red,

where green indicates informational bits and red indicates

faults or critical conditions requiring attention, such as

immediate need to charge the battery.

NOTE: All 6 digits of the “R” value must be entered,

including leading zeroes to trigger decoding function.

LED Indicators NeverDie® BMS has an LED indicator integrated into the Power/On/Off/Re-Set button on the unit itself and in some cases, there are

also optional remote LED indicators. There can be one or two remote LEDs, for Power On/Off/Alarm status and Low Battery status.

Please refer to your specific installation to check which LEDs, if any, you have available in your system.

Power On/Off/Alarm – This LED indicator is integrated into the Power Button or could be a separate remote LED,

depending on specific installation. LED is off when BMS is turned off and battery power is disabled. LED is on when BMS is on

and battery power is on. LED flashes rapidly when BMS is in alarm state and battery power is disabled. LED blinks briefly when

BMS is on and sending telemetry data, but battery power was turned off by operator, usually this is only available in the dual

stage power up mode.

Low Battery – This optional LED indicator is typically installed at the control panel, so the operator can see when the

battery is getting low and needs to be charged. LED turns on when battery goes below approx. 20% SOC and can be based on

pack voltage trigger of 3.05VPC or Coulomb counter value of 20%, whichever comes first. When charging is in progress LED

will turn off after voltage rises above 3.30VPC and Coulomb counter value is above 20%.

BMS Troubleshooting Last Recorded Trouble Code. When BMS is powered on, the LCD display shows the last recorded trouble code and the

firmware version for 5 seconds, before it switches to normal data display. If you missed it, you can power cycle the BMS again and

take a snapshot of the LCD display during first 5 seconds. When contacting Lithionics Battery for support, please write down this last

recorded trouble code and the firmware version and pass this information to your support contact.

Module(s) Voltage. Most Lithionics Battery systems are built as modular assemblies, with series/parallel connected battery

modules and an external NeverDie® BMS enclosure. In such a modular architecture, troubleshooting comes down to simply checking

voltages of individual modules, and, checking continuity of all connections. A healthy and well-maintained battery would exhibit the

same or very similar voltages on all modules of the same configuration, so if you see one module’s voltage is significantly different

from the other modules, it could indicate an imbalance in the State of Charge between modules, which causes unexpected BMS events,


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since BMS protects the individual cells in the difference modules. When contacting Lithionics Battery for support, please write down

the exact voltages of each battery module and note if the measurement was taken at the end of charge or discharge, or somewhere

in between.

Negative Reference wire. Make sure the BMS negative reference wire has a good solid connection to the battery’s most

negative terminal. The BMS uses this wire for its own power as well as voltage measurements. If there is a poor or loose connection,

the BMS will have unpredictable behavior. For systems utilizing the Anderson Power Products EURO DIN connector, the negative

reference wire is integrated into the wire harness provided with the system.

OptoLoop® connections. Each battery module has a normally-closed (N.C.) OptoLoop® (a.k.a. Cell Loop) output composed

of 2 light green-colored 18-gauge wires. These wires are “daisy-chained” from one battery module to the next. The OptoLoop®

connection starts and ends at the NeverDie® BMS unit. If there is ever a fault in any battery module, then its Cell Loop will go to an

open-circuit condition which communicates the fault to the NeverDie® BMS. This simple open/closed circuit fault makes diagnosing a

battery system very easy. To check the continuity of the OptoLoop® connection on each module, disconnect the light green wires from

the adjacent modules and check for continuity between the 2 wires using a DVM set to continuity checking mode, which beeps when

there is continuity between probes. Also check for overall continuity across all modules at the BMS connection points. The BMS must

sense continuity of the OptoLoop® in order to operate properly. The Opto-Loop connections points are normally either Delphi

Weatherpack connectors or located in 2 small signal pins of the Anderson EURO DIN connector plug.

Advanced BMS functions When the BMS is initially powered on by the Power button, it performs health checks across the OptoLoop® and also checks the pack

level voltage and the State of Charge (SOC). The BMS then begins to transmit digital data onto its available interfaces, such as CAN,

RS232 or TCP/IP, depending on the specific BMS configuration. If all health checks are successful, BMS will close the main contactor

and allow use of the battery power. Some applications may require dual stage Power Up, where BMS waits for a separate command

to close the contactor. This mode can be enabled in the BMS configuration if desired.

When the main contactor is closed, and the battery is being charged or discharged, the BMS is always monitoring battery health

parameters and will open the contactor if any trouble is detected. You can also open the contactor by holding the Power button for 3

seconds or by sending the $BATOFF command via its data interface.

Below is a detailed description of advanced BMS features and how they affect the state of the contactor. Some features depend on

setup parameters which are described in detail in the Configuration section of this user guide.

Power On/Off – Briefly press the Power button to turn on the BMS and enable battery power. The battery can be

turned off by holding the Power button for 3 seconds, or by sending $BATOFF command via its digital interface. If BMS is

configured for dual stage power up, then first button press will turn on the BMS and second press will turn on the battery

power. In this mode the BMS is powered off by holding Power button for 10 seconds while turning off the battery power.

NOTE: Some high voltage battery systems have a separate latching BMS Power Switch used to stop quiescent load from

internal DC/DC converter. Always turn off the BMS with the Power Switch when placing the battery into storage or for

removal and/or transporting of the battery, as well as making any wiring changes!

Reserve Voltage Cutoff (RVC) – NeverDie® function. During discharge the BMS will open its contactor,

disconnecting the battery power when battery reaches the RVC level, which allows the battery to store energy reserve. The

RVC level is defined either by voltage (typically 3.0VPC or 3.1VPC) or by SOC percentage set in the BMS Configuration,

whichever comes first. Once the battery is in the RVC state you can access the reserve capacity by a short press of the Reset

button or by sending the $BATON command via digital interface. If desired, the RVC function can be disabled by setting RVC=0

in the BMS’ Configuration.

Low Voltage Cutoff (LVC) – During discharge the BMS will open its contactor when the battery reaches the LVC

level. LVC is monitored on both pack level and cell level, using the OptoLoop® interface. The contactor remains open until the

BMS detects a charge voltage, at which point the contactor will close to allow charging. The BMS will monitor the initial charge

for expected voltage rise and will open the contactor again if voltage rise is not detected within 20 minutes, or immediately

if voltage continues to fall below LVC level. Some charging sources require to “see” the battery before allowing charging, in

which case LVC lockout can be temporarily overridden by holding down the Power button for 10 seconds while powering on

the BMS. This override will allow the contactor to close so charging can begin. If voltage rise is not detected within 20 minutes

or voltage continues to fall below LVC level, the contactor will open again to protect the battery.


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High Voltage Cutoff (HVC) – During charging the BMS will open the contactor if any cell signals HVC voltage level

via the OptoLoop® interface. This should not happen during normal operation if charging sources are setup with correct

voltage levels. Once the charge voltage is removed, battery voltage will slowly lower to resting level, typically 3.4VPC. If your

charging source has a “float” mode, it should be set to 3.4VPC, which is a resting voltage of a fully charged cell. If your charger

has a control interface connected to the BMS, then the BMS will force the charger to stay off until voltage drops below this

“float” level.

Temperature Based Cutoff – when temperature inside the battery goes below or above preset safe limits BMS

will open the contactor to prevent further use of the battery until temperature returns under safe limits. Different

temperature limits are enforced for charging and discharging due to nature of Lithium chemistry. Discharge safe range is -4F

to 131F, charge safe range is 32F to 113F.

Field Control Circuit (FCC) – if your BMS is wired to your alternator’s field or regulator circuit, it will disable the

alternator’s output by opening this circuit when HVC condition is detected, to protect the battery from being overcharged.

The BMS will open this circuit 2 seconds prior to opening main contactor, allowing alternator field to discharge which protects

the alternator’s diodes from potential damage. This circuit can also be used to disable other charge sources, such as solar

controllers or inverter/charger’s charge function.

Short Circuit Protection – The BMS will detect a possible short circuit event if the battery voltage drops below

1.75VPC, immediately disconnecting the contactor. The contactor will stay open until the BMS is power cycled or Power

button is held down for 10 seconds to reset the BMS, or charge voltage is applied to the BMS.

NOTE: The lithium battery is capable of significant power output and may maintain the voltage level during a short circuit

event, producing a very large current, capable of melting or welding connection points and damaging cables and

connectors. Even if the BMS detects short circuit and tries to open the contactor, the contactor itself might weld under

such a very large current. Make sure the battery connection is always properly fused and does not rely on the BMS alone

for short circuit protection!

Automatic Generator Start/Restart (AGSR On/Off) – if your BMS is wired to your generator’s start

circuit, it will close the circuit to start the generator when voltage drops below 3.05VPC or BAT percentage drops below the

“AGSR On” level set in BMS Configuration, whichever comes first. The AGSR circuit will open when the voltage rises above

3.5VPC after 15-minute delay, which simulates a Constant Voltage charge stage. You can also set “AGSR Off” level in the BMS

Configuration if your application requires only partial generator-based charge, which can be later supplemented by solar or

other renewable energy sources. This allows for maximum fuel saving and reduced wear on the generator.

Pre-charge Control – This optional feature requires hardware implementation inside of the BMS unit. The purpose

of this feature is to reduce inrush current when closing the contactor into a capacitive load, such as an inverter or motor

controller. When the BMS is commanded to close the contactor, it will first close a small pre-charge relay in series with a pre-

charge resistor, which limits the current to a safe low level. Such a small current will safely charge the capacitive load, reducing

voltage across main the contactor, then the BMS will close the main contactor without high inrush current. Pre-charge timing

and voltage threshold are configurable, allowing fine tuning of the process in complex systems with mixed capacitive and

resistive loads. If at the end of pre-charge timer voltage threshold has not been reached, BMS will not close the contactor

and will set PRECHARGE_ERROR status flag for troubleshooting purposes. This protects the system in case of pre-charge

circuit failure or short circuit at the Load side of the BMS. NOTE: If load resistance is very low (such as a high-power resistive

load bank) then the BMS will mistake it for a short circuit. In this case you must disable the pre-charge control feature as

it was not designed for resistive loads.

Auxiliary Contacts – This feature is part of the special type of contactors used inside the BMS unit, which has

mechanically coupled aux contacts on the same arm as the main contacts. This allows monitoring for possible welding of the

contactor in high power systems. The BMS monitors the state of aux contacts when changing state of the main contactor to

make sure there is a match between actual and the expected state of the contactor. If there is a mismatch, the BMS will

attempt to unstick the contactor by repeatedly pulsing the coil up to 10 times. If not successful, the BMS will set the

AUX_ERROR status flag for troubleshooting purposes. During normal operation the BMS will set AUX_STATE flag to indicate

current state of aux contacts, which can be interpreted as the actual state of the main contactor.

Charger OFF control – When BMS is wired to control a charger, it will disable the charger when battery power is

commanded OFF with a long push of the Power button or the data stream command $BATOFF. This is a safety feature to

prevent chargers from outputting voltage when the battery is disconnected.

Contactor Flutter detection – if any abnormal condition, such as loose wiring or faulty equipment causes the

BMS to turn contactor on/off 10 times in a 10-minute period, then the BMS will enter the Power Off state, preventing

contactor flutter. Once the problem is investigated and addressed, hold down Power button for 10 seconds to reset the BMS,

to return to normal operation.


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Alarm Circuit – An optional wiring circuit from the BMS which can provide an audible or visual alert when BMS detects

any trouble with the battery.

Lockout Voltage detection – if an incorrectly configured charge source, such as solar controller or

inverter/charger set to higher battery voltage is applied to the BMS, it will detect wrong voltage range and will prevent from

closing the contactor, protecting the battery from wrong charge source.

BMS Configuration The BMS stores several configuration parameters in its EEPROM memory. These parameters configure the BMS for a specific battery

size, voltage and application. Normally Lithionics Battery ships every BMS unit pre-configured for the specific battery, but in some

cases the customer may need to make changes to those parameters to better match their individual system requirements. The BMS

configuration can be done over a Serial or TCP/IP data interface, by entering SETUP mode and using AT commands. If you do not have

a data interface connected, but have an LCD display, most parameters can be changed using the 2 buttons on the LCD Display.

Configuring BMS using LCD Display Unit To enter the BMS Configuration Menu press and hold both buttons on the LCD Display simultaneously for 6 seconds. The BMS will

enter SETUP mode and will display the first configuration parameter and its current value.

-Press the left button to scroll through the range of values.

-Press the right button to lock the value and move to the next parameter screen.

NOTE: If no button(s) are pressed within 5 minutes then Setup Mode will time-out and switch to display mode automatically.

Below is the listing of all setup screens and their variable descriptions. The factory default values are recorded for you at the end of

this document for your reference.

Pack Size - Battery pack Amp Hour capacity. Settings are from 1Ah to 3000Ah. 0-50Ah are in 1 Ah increments. 50Ah-3000Ah

are in 10 Ah increments.

Full Vlt – Full Voltage. Set this to the maximum per-cell voltage your battery reaches at the end of charge. This will be used to

sync the SoC meter’s 100% reading when the battery reaches this voltage level. Typically, this value is 3.60V per cell. So, a 12V (4 cell)

battery is 4 x 3.60 = 14.4V. When battery reaches this voltage at the end of charge cycle, the SOC value will reset to 100%.

NOTE: If you notice that your SoC meter value never reaches 100% at the end of charge cycle, you may need to slightly lower Full

Vlt value to what the voltage reading is on LCD Display at the moment when the charger turns off. This value must be higher than

the resting voltage of the battery since the charger’s end voltage is higher than its resting voltage. Typical value range should be

between 3.50 and 3.60 VPC.

Min SOC – Minimal State of Charge. This percentage value sets the “Empty Battery” level, a.k.a. Reserve Capacity, so the

user can go by a BAT Gauge reading and not completely deplete the battery, to preserve its lifecycles. For example, if this value

is set to 20%, then BAT Gauge will report 0% when SoC is still at 20%. If you desire to use your battery to its full capacity

and/or want the BAT Gauge to reflect true SoC, then set this value to zero.

In addition, when RVC Mode is enabled, BMS will turn off battery power when SoC reaches this preset level, assuming it comes

before battery voltage reaches RVC level, typically 3.00VPC. This allows NeverDie® Reserve feature on Advanced Series BMS to act

on both voltage trigger and SoC level trigger, whichever comes first.

AGSR On/Off – AGSR tr igger points. These percentage values determine the minimal a n d t h e m a x i m u m Bat Gauge

levels at which the Automatic Generator Start/Restart circuit is triggered on and off. AGSR On circuit also triggers on voltage set to

3.05VPC, hence allowing flexible control of generator starting point. The circuit also triggers off when voltage reaches 3.50VPC with

15min delay. AGSR On value must be non-zero to activate this feature. Setting AGSR On to zero disables the AGSR feature completely.

Temp Unit – Temperature Units. Set this to Fahrenheit (F) or Celsius (C).


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Charge Eff – Charging Efficiency. This percentage value slows down the rate of SoC climb during the charge to compensate

for battery losses during discharge cycle. Recommended setting is 98%. In applications with high discharge rates, energy losses are

more pronounced, so this value must be set lower to more accurately report SoC and BAT Gauge values during partial charges.

This setting must be tuned experimentally for best accuracy. Ideal setting will cause SoC to reach 100% at approximately the same

time as charger is finishing up the full charge.

Dead Zone – Dead Zone. Due to thermal drift in Hall Effect sensors when temperature fluctuations are wide and fast, BMS might

report non-zero current reading when no current is present. Dead Zone value allows ignoring small current readings when they are

likely false (when small reading fluctuates between zero and non-zero values). Default value 0.3A is recommended for best zero-point

stability.

Idle Load – Idle Load (mA). This setting represents the constant idle load current powering the BMS system. This can be measured

with a digital multi-meter in DC amperage mode in series with the BMS’s negative reference wire. Allowed range is 0mA – 200mA.

Since idle current is usually too low to register by internal hall-effect sensor, but still affects SoC reading over long time periods when

battery sits idle, setting this value allows for better long-term accuracy of SoC counter.

Alarm – Alarm function. Turns ON or OFF an Alarm function, which drives internal buzzer as well as AUXOUT2 external relay circuit

when BMS is in Alarm state.

RVC – NeverDie Reserve function. Default setting STD (Standard) would turn off the battery while leaving reserve charge, which can

be accesses by pressing the reset button. When set to EXT (Extended) amount of reserve charge is increased on voltage-based triggers.

Serial Data Interface Lithionics Battery offers several options to connect your BMS serial port to a standard PC interface such as USB or RS232. Please refer

to Appendix B for technical details. Once connection is made and COM port is initialized there will be a continuous stream of data

packets with 1 second time interval between each packet. Each data packet is an ASCII string of 47 characters, containing 10 data

fields. Each field starts with a label character and is followed by a numeric data of constant length, padded by leading zeroes. Each

string is terminated by return and new line characters, bytes 0x0D and 0x0A.

Example of Serial Data packet:

B1H00000V0000F000S000D0A00000W000000T000R000000

Serial Data packet fields:

B – Battery address, typically 1, in multi-battery systems this will represent battery order – 1-digit long

H - AmpHours remaining, in 0.1Ah resolution, i.e. 123 = 12.3Ah – 5-digit long

V – Volts, in 0.1V resolution, i.e. 123 = 12.3V – 4-digit long

F - Bat Gauge, in percent, i.e. 100 = 100% – 3-digit long

S - SoC percent, in percent, i.e. 100 = 100% – 3-digit long

D – Current direction, 1 – charging, 0 – discharging – 1-digit long

A - Amps instant, in 0.1A resolution, i.e. 123 = 12.3Amp – 5-digit long

W - Watts instant, in 1W resolution, i.e. 20000 = 20000W – 6-digit long

T – Temperature, in degrees, units depends on setup parameter – 3-digit long

R – System Status – 6-digit long, see details below

NOTE: Two additional data formats are available by setting DTYPE value in Config mode. All 3 formats have the same data fields in

the same order, with same line termination, the difference is only in delimiters.

DTYPE=0 – fixed length data fields with labels as described above.


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EXAMPLE: B1H00010V0135F100S100D0A00000W000000T077R008080

DTYPE=1 – variable length data fields with labels, comma delimited, with label “E” indicating end of string

EXAMPLE: B1,H10,V135,F100,S100,D0,A0,W0,T77,R008080,E

DTYPE=2 – fixed length data fields without labels, comma delimited

EXAMPLE: 1,00010,0135,100,100,0,00000,000000,077,008080

TCP/IP Data Interface If your BMS is equipped with the optional TCP/IP Data Interface, you can connect the BMS to your LAN and transmit data to any IP

based host. The TCP/IP interface supports Auto Negotiation (Full/Half duplex and 10/100 Mb speed). Data is transmitted over a UDP

socket in a text string with CR+LF termination. The data format is the same as RS232 Serial Data, see above chapters. The data string

is inserted into a UDP packet and sent to the destination IP address. The receiving host would listen on UDP socket, get the data string

and break it down into the individual data fields.

BMS is shipped with default IP configuration described below:

IP Address – 192.168.0.254

Subnet Mask – 255.255.255.0

Gateway – 192.168.0.1

Destination IP – 192.168.0.255 (broadcast to local LAN)

Source Port – 48879 (0xBEEF)

Destination Port – 65261 (0xFEED)

To change the BMS’ IP configuration for your network you must use the Serial-Ethernet

Gateway Configuration device (Lithionics Part# 50-196) which can be used with a Windows

PC to communicate with the BMS over a crossover RJ45 cable. This allows you to avoid

connecting the BMS to a live network, which might have different IP addressing, and also to

allow the use of a simple serial terminal for configuration, rather than writing custom

software to handle UDP socket communications. This device has a USB Serial port based on

the common FTDI chipset, so it’s recognized as a COM port by Windows host. Free terminal

software Termite can be used to communicate to the BMS thru the Gateway device, see

RS232 Data Interface section above for details. Once the BMS is configured with the desired

IP addressing it can be connected to a live network for real time data processing.

BMS Ethernet TCP/IP Physical Interface: Typically, the physical interface is an M12 D-Coded connector which is an

industrial weather resistant standard for an Ethernet connection. If your network connection requires a RJ45 plug, use a conversion

cable from M12 to RJ45.


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CANBus Data Interface

If your BMS is equipped with the optional CANBus interface, you can connect the BMS to any CANBus compatible receiver and read

BMS data messages. The following messages have been defined for Advanced Series BMS. Default bus speed is 250kbps but can be

configured for 125kbps or 500kbps if required. Messages use 29-bit addressing and 8-byte data frames (CAN 2.0B). Messages are

formatted for compatibility with RV-C protocol, which is also partially compatible with J1939, NMEA2000 and XanBus networks. The

CANBus electrical interface circuit is galvanically isolated from the battery pack to prevent ground loops and allow multiple BMS units

on the same bus. For additional protocol details see RV-C Application specs at http://www.rv-c.com/

1. Node addressing. Due to resource limitations BMS will not support dynamic address assignments at this time. Source

Address (SA) will be configurable via BMS configuration interface and default value will be set to 69 (0x45) per RV-C specs for

a BMS device. If multiple BMS devices are present on the network, then integrators can change SA from default value to

another appropriate value. Per RV-C specs address 70 (0x46) can also be used.

2. Instance addressing. Many data messages include an instance number, allowing multiple instances of a device class to

coexist on the network. Instance will be configurable as BATID in the BMS configuration interface with default value set to 1.

If multiple BMS devices are present on the network, then integrators can change the instance number from default value to

another appropriate value according to RV-C specs.

3. Supported messages. Below messages will be supported by the BMS as defined in the RV-C Application specs. Last 2

messages are proprietary for Lithionics BMS status reports and future development.

Message DGN / PGN Notes

REQUEST 0xEA00 BMS listens and responds to these messages

ADDRESS_CLAIM 0xEE00 BMS will claim preset SA=0x45, but can be changed in config

DM_RV 0x1FECA Diagnostic data as defined in RV-C specs

PRODUCT_ID 0xFEEB Will fit in 3 frames – INITIAL_PACKET + Li3*BMS*v714**

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_1 0x1FFFD provides battery Voltage and Current data

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_2 0x1FFFC provides battery Temperature and SOC data

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_3 0x1FFFB provides remaining Ah capacity

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_4 0x1FEC9 provides desired charger state and charge specs

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_6 0x1FEC7 provides HVC and LVC status

DC_SOURCE_STATUS_11 0x1FEA5 provides more status bits, total Ah capacity and current Power

DC_SOURCE_COMMAND 0x1FEA4 accepts ON/OFF/Charge-ON commands

PROP_LITHIONICS_COMMAND 0xEF45 accepts request for proprietary status data

PROP_LITHIONICS_STATUS 0xEF## provides proprietary status bits and other data

For detailed description of messages and data encoding, download a document - NeverDie BMS Advanced CANbus protocol.pdf

from http://www.lithionicsbattery.com/user-guides/


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AMPSEAL Connector

The NeverDie® BMS has a 23 pin AMPSEAL Connector on its side

wall (for internal BMS models, this is located on the lid on most

batteries), which can be used to wire BMS’s auxiliary circuits to

other components in the energy storage system. This allows

implementation of additional BMS functions listed below. The

scope of this document is only to list AMPSEAL pins and their

functions. Please contact your battery supplier or Lithionics Battery

for specific wiring diagrams and technical assistance to make sure

these pins are used as intended and prevent internal damage to the

BMS unit. Pay close attention to electrical specs and fusing

requirements for each circuit.

NOTE: Some pins are part of optional BMS features and may not

be enabled on your BMS unit. Please check with your battery

supplier or Lithionics Battery regarding available features in your

BMS unit.

Pin Function Description Details

1 FCC 1 Alternator Field Control Circuit wire 1 dry contact, up to 24VDC 2A, needs ext. fuse

2 AGSR 2 Automatic Generator Start/Restart wire 2 dry contact, up to 24VDC 2A, needs ext. fuse

3 AGSR 1 Automatic Generator Start/Restart wire 1 dry contact, up to 24VDC 2A, needs ext. fuse

4 +12V Supply Pre-charge/Alarm output 12V supply positive 15V 500mA load limit, internally PTC fused

5 Pre-charge Out Neg Pre-charge output negative wire low side protected FET switch, 1A load limit

6 Alarm Out Neg Alarm output negative wire low side protected FET switch, 1A load limit

7 +12V Ext Pwr Input AC sense / External power positive wire BMS ext. power, needs 11-18VDC 3A supply

8 GND Common Ground for all non-isolated circuits Tied to battery negative with 8A internal fuse

9 FCC 2 Alternator Field Control Circuit wire 2 dry contact, up to 24VDC 2A, needs ext. fuse

10 CAN High isolated CANBus High signal 5V isolated CAN_H signal - TI ISO1050 IC

11 UART TX isolated serial UART TX signal 0-5V CMOS/TTL signal, isolated from battery

12 Analog BAT% Output analog 0-5V BAT% Output signal 0-5V analog signal, 1mA load, not isolated

13 LED-Pod Green Tri-Color LED Pod - Green signal 15V 50mA LED driver, internally PTC fused

14 Charger Relay 2 Charger Interlock relay wire 2 dry contact, up to 48VDC 100mA, needs ext. fuse

15 Reset Button 1 Reset button wire 1 15V 5mA normally open push button circuit

16 CAN/UART +5V isolated CANBus 5V power 5V 50mA isolated supply for PC interface dongle

17 CAN Low isolated CANBus Low signal 5V isolated CAN_L signal - TI ISO1050 IC

18 UART RX isolated serial UART RX signal 0-5V CMOS/TTL signal, isolated from battery

19 CAN/UART GND isolated CANBus/Serial ground isolated ground for PC interface, CAN shield drain

20 LED-Pod Red Tri-Color LED Pod - Red signal 15V 50mA LED driver, internally PTC fused

21 AUX Input Auxiliary input signal 15V 5mA input for custom BMS functions

22 Charger Relay 1 Charger Interlock relay wire 1 dry contact, up to 48VDC 100mA, needs ext. fuse

23 Reset Button 2 Reset button wire 2 15V 5mA normally open push button circuit


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Serial Port Connector

Latest versions of the BMS are equipped with AMPSEAL 23-pin connector, which includes pins for UART serial port. These pins are

wired to a standard 3.5mm phone jack, which is used to connect to a UART-USB dongle, commonly available from suppliers like

Mouser, Digikey, Allied, etc. This allows you to connect the BMS to a laptop via USB port used as a virtual COM port. Here is the link

to the USB dongle at Mouser:

https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/TTL-232R-5V-AJ?R=0virtualkey0virtualkeyTTL-232R-5V-AJ

And a pinout of the 3.5mm jack to BMS Ampseal 23-pin connector

If your BMS is equipped with the optional RS232 Serial Data interface, then either a typical DB9 connector or more industrial M12 3-

Pin A-Code connector can be used as the data cable. You can connect the Serial Data cable between the BMS and a Computer to

communicate with the BMS. You can use a commonly available RS232 to USB adapters when connecting to PCs without a native RS232

port. We recommend adapters based on the “FTDI” brand chipset, which are robust and have native driver support in popular PC

Operating Systems.

DB9 Pin-out: Connect as a null modem cable

M12 A-code 3-Pin Pin-out: Connect as a null modem cable

Any terminal emulator software with COM port support can be used

to communicate with BMS. We recommend free software called

Termite, which allows data logging and has bidirectional command

interface:

http://www.compuphase.com/software_termite.htm .

Download “complete setup” version to be able to save data log files

for later analysis.

In the Termite configuration screen set the port parameters as

shown in the screenshot, selecting the COM port number which is

connected to BMS. It’s critical to set “Transmitted text” parameters

exactly as shown here to communicate with the BMS successfully.

neverdie bms advanced series user guide v8.0.08...bms operation the neverdie® bms operates by...

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